Bringing History Alive
On Friday, Sept. 29, South Valley Civic Theatre presented a special performance of the play “1776” for Britton Middle School eighth graders at the Morgan Hill Community Playhouse.
The eighth-grade curriculum focuses on early American history. A play about the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution was a perfect way for them to be introduced to the topic, said Margaret McCann, chair of the school’s social studies department.
The historical events that led up to the signing of the Declaration of Independence were presented using humor, music and dance, and “will stay with them long after the words in the text book are gone,” McCann said.
The producers, Kathy and Nikki Tom, along with the cast and musicians took the day off work to do the special presentation twice so all Britton eighth graders could attend. Kathy stated that she would like to see this become an annual event as she could see how much the students got out of the experience.
Britton Middle School Principal Carol Coursey made a cameo appearance as the artist working on a portrait of Ben Franklin.
